Cartier Presents Six New Models For SIHH 2016, With Live Pics

It's December already (already!) and you know what that means: pre-SIHH announcements for watches that will officially debut next month in Geneva are already coming in. This one's a big one: six new models from Cartier (and believe us when we tell you this is just the tip of the iceberg.) Without further ado, let's get this show on the road.

It's December already (already!) and you know what that means: pre-SIHH announcements for watches that will officially debut next month in Geneva are already coming in. This one's a big one: six new models from Cartier (and believe us when we tell you this is just the tip of the iceberg.) Without further ado, let's get this show on the road.

Clé De Cartier Automatic Skeleton

First up, we have a fully skeletonized version of the Clé de Cartier, which was first introduced by Cartier last year, and whose distinguishing features are a new case shape for Cartier, as well as the "key" (clé in French) winding crown, which is fitted with a self-centering mechanism that automatically puts the crown in line with the flank of the case when you've released it.

The movement is the in-house Cartier caliber 9621 MC, with a 22k gold rotor, and a 41mm x 11.45mm case in palladium. The strap is alligator and the deployant (folding) clasp is in 18k white gold. We're told by Cartier that there will be a brilliant cut diamond-set version as well. Power reserve for the movement is 48 hours at 28,800 vph.

The Cartier Crash Skeleton In Pink Gold

Last year's re-introduction of the Crash (in platinum, and it was gone before you could blink) was one of the hits of the show. The Crash is one of the most original and interesting watch designs of all time, and though it's more idiosyncratic and rarer by far than the Tank, it's nonetheless at least as much a symbol as the Tank of watchmaking and watch design a la Cartier. First introduced in 1967, the Crash was supposedly inspired by a watch "damaged in an accident" says Cartier, to the director of Cartier London for repair. Is the story true? Who knows – and furthermore, who cares; the Crash has long since transcended the (probably apocryphal) story of its origin.

The movement is Cartier caliber 9618 MC, and, as Cartier's Carole Forestier proudly notes, "we crashed the movement." It's a shaped caliber, , running in 21 jewels, with a 3 day power reserve, beating at 28,800 vpy. Overall the pink gold case is 28.15mm x 45.32mm, so despite what you might think, the watch can easily be worn by any man who's man enough to pull off wearing it.

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Rotonde de Cartier Earth And Moon (With Meteorite Dial)

The Rotonde de Cartier Earth and Moon, with caliber 9440 MC, was also originally introduced last year in a 47mm platinum case, with a lapis lazuli dial: a spectacular, large, dazzling statement watch if there ever was one. The signature feature of the watch was (and is) the on-demand moonphase; pressing the pusher on the case at 4:00 causes a disk exactly the diameter of the tourbillon cage to swing into position, indicating, by how much it obscures the tourbillon, the current phase of the moon. The accuracy of the moonphase indication is one day's error in every 126 years; the watch also offers a second time zone indication on a 24 hour disk, which can be independently adjusted by the pusher at 2:00.

The movement is the same as last year: caliber 9440 MC, at 38.80mm, in a 16.65mm x 47mm case and this is a limited edition of only 15 pieces. The distinguishing feature of this year's model is a pink gold case, and a rather spectral, ghostly, and very lunar-feeling meteorite dial which manages very well to convey what Apollo 11's Buzz Aldrin called the "magnificent desolation" of the Moon.

The Panthères Et Colibri With Animated Dial And On Demand Power Reserve

This is both a spectacular high jewelry piece and a very interesting complication – in fact, it's so impressive as a piece of jewelry making that it's easy to miss the mechanical complexity, which in typical Cartier fashion is not on display for its own sake, but is instead subordinated to the achievement of a particular aesthetic effect. Telling the time is not the highest priority of this watch; instead, we have front and center a panther with a hummingbird above ("colibri" is French for hummingbird.) Pressing the crown activates the dial animation: a baby panther in pink gold emerges from below its mother, while the hummingbird ascends along an arc, with the distance it travels to escape the pouncing infant showing the remaining power reserve.

The movement is Cartier caliber 9915 MC, 36.18mm x 5.45mm. The case is in 18k white gold; with the panther in rhodium finished 18k white gold as well; Mom is set with 270 brilliant cut diamonds, with her spots in black laquer; the 42.75mm case is set with 314 brilliant cut diamonds. A gorgeous example of horological sertissage and a very interesting complication as well (if there is any other watch with an on-demand power reserve I can't remember it.)

The Cartier Panthère Mystérieuse

Speaking of mysteries, it continues to be a mystery to me that some people accuse Cartier of plagiarism when it presents mystery watches or clocks; the mystery clock was invented by a French stage magician named Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin in 1839, and Cartier presented its first mystery clock in 1913. This particular watch is an example of Cartier in classic form both as a jeweler, and as a watch and clockmaker: the Cartier Panther crouches sinously over the mystery dial, which is propelled by movement components sequestered at the rim of the movement. That movement is caliber 9981 MC, with sapphire panes driven by a 27 jewel, 31.90mm mechanism in a white gold and black laquer 40mm x 8.50mm case. 533 diamonds on the panther; the eyes are set with pear-cut emeralds.

The Rotonde de Cartier Day/Night Retrograde Moon Phases

Once again, in the Rotonde de Cartier Day/Night Retrograde Moon Phases, we have quite a lot going on mechanically but in the service of creating some visual razzle-dazzle rather than reveling in mechanics as such. Hours are marked with a rotating Sun/Moon disk, in which either a sun ray or moon ray points to the dial marker to show the time from 6AM to 6PM for the Sun, and 6PM to 6AM for the moon, and across the bottom half of the dial, a retrograde moon phase indication shows the age and phase of the moon. This is not Cartier's first outing with this complication; the design was inspired originally by Cartier's "Comet" clocks which had a similar though not identical design; and the Day/Night Retrograde Moonphase design was first introduced, as a wristwatch, in the CPCP (Collection Privée Cartier Paris) collection, which though now out of production remains a perennial favorite among Cartier connoisseurs and collectors.

As we have mentioned, this is, as you might expect from Cartier, just the tip of the iceberg and we look forward to sharing more with you next January, when the Ali Baba's Cave that is Cartier opens its doors at the SIHH.

An earlier version of this story stated that the hours were indicated with a retrograde hour hand in the Rotonde de Cartier Day/Night Retrograde Moon Phases​ watch. In fact, the hours are indicated by a rotating AM/PM Sun/Moon disk. HODINKEE regrets the error. --JF